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Wood Elven language
Wood Elven is an Elven language, the official language of both the Kingdom of Dragoc and the Principality of Artaburro, as well as the language of Wood Elven diaspora all around Artograch. The language has two main variants, the Dragoc variant and the Artaburro variant, which - other than religious terminology and political jargon - are mutually intelligible with each other, and differ only in pronunciation, with some slight diferences in vocabulary (the Dragoc variant being more purist, the Artaburro variant having more loanwords, higher exposure to foreign influence). Evolution from Classical Wood Elven Consonants Vowels Consonants Dragoc * ç is the allophone of /h/ before /i/ and /j/ * ɸ is the allophone of /h/ before /u/ in native words, but appears as a separate phoneme in foreign words. * The pronunciation of /r/: ** Apico-alveolar / retroflex flap ɾ̺~ɽ before /a ɛ e i/ and when palatalized. Some younger males may also use a post-alveolar approximant ɹ̠, especially in slang. *** Some male speakers consistently use the apico-alveolar flap ɾ̺, regardless of the following vowel. ** Dental lateral flap / approximant ɺ̪~l̪ before /ɔ o u/. The approximant is rare, mostly restricted to younger female speakers, especially singers. *** Some female speakers may consistently use the dental lateral flap ɺ̪, regardless of the following vowel. ** In aggressive speech and cursing, the alveolar trill r is used. Some - mainly older - male speakers may consistently use the trill, even in normal speech, sometimes in formal speech too. Artaburro * ç is the allophone of /h/ before /i/ and /j/ * /v/, /kʷ/ and /gʷ/ appear only in High Elven and Etrandish loanwords. * Unlike in Dragoc Wood Elven, in Artaburro Wood Elven, /r/ and /l/ are distinct and phonemic. ** /l/ appears only in loanwords, mainly from High Elven and Etrandish. ** /r/ is realized as an alveolar flap/trill ɾ~r, regardless of the vowels that follow it. Vowels Dragoc /i/ and /iː/, /u/ and /uː/, as well as /a/ and /aː/ differ only in length, no difference in vowel quality. Historical /u/ can be pronunced as ɨᵝ~ɯᵝ, ʉ~u or y, depending on the environment: * ʉ~u after labial consonants and nasals (including (/ɲ/) * y after /j/ and palatal(ized) consonants (except /ɲ/) * ɨᵝ~ɯᵝ everywhere else o~ʊ is considered the allophone of /ɔ/ between another vowel and a syllable boundary - for example, /naɔ/ is pronounced näo̯~näʊ̯. In foreign words, the diphthong au̯ also makes an appearence. The cluster /aɛ/ can be pronounced in various ways - as äʔɛ, äjɛ, äɛ̯ or even äɪ̯, causing confusion with /ai/. Some speakers collapse the cluster to a long æː. Artaburro /i/ and /iː/, /y/ and /yː/, /u/ and /uː/, as well as /a/ and /aː/ differ only in length, no difference in vowel quality. Historical Wood Elven /u uː/ got completely fronted to /y yː/. /u uː/ appear only in loanwords, mainly from from High Elven and Etrandish. o~ʊ is considered the allophone of /ɔ/ between another vowel and a syllable boundary - for example, /naɔ/ is pronounced näo̯~näʊ̯. In foreign words, the diphthong au̯ also makes an appearence. The cluster /aɛ/ can be pronounced in various ways - as äʔɛ, äjɛ, äɛ̯ or even äɪ̯, causing confusion with /ai/. Some speakers collapse the cluster to a long æː. Category:Languages of Artograch Category:Elven languages